


The Boy Who Lived

by ladyillusion



Series: Divergent Worlds [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files
Genre: Alternate Universe, Audio Format: MP3, Gen, One Shot, Podfic Available
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2020-06-22 06:04:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19661338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyillusion/pseuds/ladyillusion
Summary: “9 and 3 quarters… 9 and 3 quarters…” Yusuke muttered as he moved along past the platforms. “Where the hell is it?”His irritation was growing as he once again passed platform 10 and reversed his course. Only to find himself back at 9.“It’s not here,” he muttered in frustration. That blue-haired, oar riding lunatic didn’t know what she was talking about.





	1. The Boy Who Lived, Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is available in audio form for those who would prefer to listen rather than read. Please note that this is a text to speech recording, which means that there may be some issues with it.
> 
> [Stream or download MP3 via Google Drive](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YHEWD6ihrUeKvndQnLhDZ2ifJTExObQ4/view?usp=sharing)

“9 and 3 quarters… 9 and 3 quarters…” Yusuke muttered as he moved along past the platforms. “Where the hell is it?”

His irritation was growing as he once again passed platform 10 and reversed his course. Only to find himself back at 9.

“It’s not here,” he muttered in frustration. That blue-haired, oar riding lunatic didn’t know what she was talking about.

“Move your ass, wimp.”

Yusuke turned to see a brown-haired young woman shoving an orange-haired boy toward a brick wall.

“Hey!” he protested. “I’m working up to it, ok—”

Before he could finish what he was saying, he vanished through the wall.

Vanished.

Yusuke rubbed his eyes, then checked again. Yep, the orange-haired boy was gone. Now the brown-haired woman was shoving a trolley toward the same wall. Yusuke watched, both fascinated and sickened, as she disappeared through the wall.

Yusuke checked his position. There was platform 9… there was platform 10… this wall looked to be about three quarters of the way between them.

Well, that fit with all the weird shit Yusuke had seen over the past few weeks.

Yusuke shoved his own trolley toward the wall, deciding that if he was wrong, the trolley would take the brunt of the impact for him.

He took a deep breath and pushed the trolley forward. At the last moment, he almost pulled it back. Almost.

It slid into the wall as if it wasn’t even there. Yusuke closed his eyes and counted his steps as he kept walking forward.

He knew as soon as he’d passed through the wall. The sound of loud voices assaulted his ears.

“Hey! Watch it!”

Yusuke gaped at the orange-haired boy as he stumbled out of the way of his trolley.

“Don’t just fucking stand around looking like an idiot!” Yusuke retorted, even though he actually had no idea if that was really what the boy had been doing. Truthfully, he was feeling rattled and berating the young man gave him an outlet for his feelings.

“Maybe you should watch where you’re going!” the orange-haired boy retorted.

“Hey, buffoon! Get your ass on the train! It’s leaving in a minute!”

The brown-haired girl had returned to harass the boy, distracting him from Yusuke.

Realising that the woman’s warning also applied to himself, Yusuke hurried onto the train. He made his way straight down to the back of the train and secured himself an empty compartment.

He shoved his belongings into the rack and lounged on the seat, staring out the window at the people on the platform.

“Puu?”

Yusuke glanced at the occupant of the cage on the floor at his feet. The strangest-looking blue bird he’d ever seen stared forlornly up at him, eyes large and pleading.

“No, Puu, you have to stay in the cage,” Yusuke informed him.

The bird huffed indignantly. “Puu,” he muttered.

According to the lady at the Magical Menagerie shop, Puu was a phoenix chick. Yusuke wasn’t so sure. The bird was fat and blue. What kind of a phoenix was fat and blue? The bird looked more like a mutated Furby to him.

Nonetheless, the woman had said that the chick had been there for quite some time. No one wanted him. Yusuke couldn’t help but feel sympathy for him so he’d bought the bird.

Besides, he was cheap. He’d cost practically pocket-change.

Yusuke’s chocolate-brown eyes returned to the platform. The train’s whistle cut through the air, announcing its departure. Yusuke watched the family members left behind waving and shouting to the students who were on the train, knowing that none of them were there for him.

His mother was back home, having refused to have anything to do with magic.

Guilt nudged Yusuke in his gut, making him feel sick as the train pulled out of the station. Once he’d finally gotten hold of one of the letters she’d been so determined to hide from him, thanks to that blue-haired woman, Botan, he’d discovered that he was a wizard. The letter had been an offer of enrolment at Mahō Gakkō, his country’s most prestigious magic school.

Yusuke had initially been excited at the prospect of learning magic. And furious at his mother for keeping that from him.

But his mother had remained adamant that he wasn’t to go. As usual, Yusuke had ignored her wishes and decided to go anyway. The blue-haired girl had been all-too-eager to help him. She’d taken him to the wizarding shopping district, Diagon Alley, and helped him purchase his school supplies.

He’d thought that money would be an issue, until he’d been told that his deceased father had left him a sizeable inheritance that was tucked away deep in the vaults of Gringotts Bank.

So here he was, on a train scooting across the countryside to a remote boarding school that claimed to teach magic.

If Yusuke actually had any friends to tell, they would never believe him.

Yusuke turned away from the window at the sound of the compartment door sliding open. A boy peered through, a faint, confused frown on his face.

“Excuse me,” he said as he spotted Yusuke. “Have you seen a kitten in here?”

“Nah. Sorry,” Yusuke said. “No kittens.”

He had difficulty guessing the boy’s age. Surely he couldn’t be any younger than fifteen, since that was the minimum age the school required. They wanted their students to have a decent academic grounding in normal studies like mathematics and language before they began to learn magic.

The boy looked like he could be younger than fifteen, though. His face was elfin, his emerald eyes large. His hair was red and fell past his shoulders.

Another thing Yusuke noted was that he was also already wearing his school uniform, even though they were just passing the city limits now.

The boy’s pretty face dropped in disappointment. “But, I was sure…” he muttered, before the compartment door slid shut.

Yusuke turned his attention back to the window. Mountainous countryside flew by. He’d never spent longer than a night away from his home. Yusuke was beginning to feel uneasy about the whole thing. Maybe his mother was right. He should have stayed home, stayed on familiar ground.

He’d have to start all over again at this new school. He’d have to earn the respect of the other students once more. Learn how to get around the teachers.

“Hey, ah…”

Yusuke turned back to the door to see an unexpected sight. The orange-haired boy from the platform hovered uncertainly there, a cat carrier hanging from one hand. The boy smiled awkwardly.

“You’re the boy from the platform, right?” he asked. “The one who nearly ran me over.”

Yusuke rolled his eyes. “It wasn’t hard,” he said dryly.

The boy was big for his age. His face was full of sharp lines and angles, his eyes set small and dark. But his awkwardness lent him a sort of charm that offset his brutish looks.

“Hey, you—” the boy started, his face turning purple. But he was cut off as a slim figure slipped deftly around him.

The redhead from earlier. Jade eyes glinted with good humour at Yusuke.

“Never mind, Kuwabara,” he said. “It’s too early in the year to harbour bad feelings for someone.”

“You should tell that to that little shit, Hiei,” Kuwabara muttered. “Just because his dad’s some hotshot in the Ministry… thinks he’s better than everyone else…”

Ignoring Kuwabara’s disgruntled muttering about the mysterious Hiei, the redhead bowed politely to Yusuke.

“My name is Minamino Shuichi,” he said. “First year. This is Kuwabara Kazuma, also first year. May we join you? The other compartments are full.”

Yusuke wasn’t sure he wanted the company, but this was a chance for him to learn about the world he was stepping into. He shrugged and made room on the seat, moving closer to the window.

“Sure,” he said. “I’m Urameshi Yusuke.”

The redhead settled his slim form beside him as Kuwabara stowed the cat carrier and sat across from them, stretching out his long legs. Like Yusuke, Kuwabara had not yet changed into his school uniform. Minamino sat primly next to Yusuke as he dug around in his bag, eventually surfacing with a thick volume.

Yusuke glanced curiously at the title.

“A History of Mahō Gakkō?” he asked.

Minamino turned toward him, lowering the book. “Yes,” he said. “I found it at Diagon Alley. I thought it would be a good idea to learn about the school before term starts.”

Kuwabara blinked, displaying startled eyes as he leaned forward. “Are you Muggle-born?” he asked curiously.

Minamino nodded, a smile flitting briefly across his face. “Yes,” he said. “My mother was quite shocked by the letter. She believed it to be a hoax at first. I take it that you are from a wizarding family?”

Kuwabara nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “Both my parents are wizards. They work for the Ministry and they travel a lot. My sister graduated from Mahō Gakkō a year ago.”

“What about you, Mr. Urameshi?” Minamino asked, directing his clear emerald eyes at Yusuke.

“It’s just Yusuke,” the black-haired boy said. Minamino talked like he was older than they were. His formality seemed unnatural to Yusuke. “And, I guess I might as well be Muggle-born. My dad was a wizard but I never knew him. My mum never mentioned anything about magic until I got the letter.”

“Who was your father?”

Kuwabara’s question made Yusuke’s mouth grow dry. “His name was Raizen,” he admitted.

Kuwabara’s eyes widened. “But he was…” he trailed off, looking as though a brick had landed on his head.

The reaction wasn’t unexpected. Yusuke had encountered it several times during his shopping trip at Diagon Alley. It seemed that his father was well-known in the wizarding world. And not entirely for the right reasons.

Minamino began flipping through the book, his gaze intense as he skimmed the pages. Finally, he paused, fingertip pressed to a page.

“A Death Eater,” he said quietly. “Who betrayed the Dark Lord in order to marry a Muggle girl.” He glanced sideways at Yusuke. “And was killed for that betrayal. The mother…”

“Wait? Why is that in there?” Yusuke demanded, incensed. He made a grab for the book in Minamino’s hand, but the redhead held it out of his reach.

“The mother was also killed,” he continued. “The Dark Lord tried to murder the boy as well, but the spell bounced off the boy and hit the Dark Lord instead, killing him.”

Kuwabara stared at Yusuke with wide, shocked eyes. “That’s you?” he asked in disbelief.

Yusuke was practically leaning over Minamino’s lap in an effort to get the book. Minamino’s long arm extended out, keeping it away from Yusuke’s flailing hand.

“Calm down,” he said. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Like hell it isn’t!” Yusuke snapped. “They can’t just put that in there for any nosy bastard to read—”

“Those events are a matter of historical importance to the wizarding world. A turning point for them. The end of the long and destructive reign of a tyrant,” Minamino lectured, his voice still infuriatingly calm.

“That woman wasn’t my mother,” Yusuke snapped. “They can’t even get their fucking facts right.”

He moved off Minamino, glowering at him as he pressed his back to the window. “The woman the Dark Lord murdered was my aunt,” he muttered.

“Huh,” Minamino said thoughtfully as he brought the book back to his lap. “Someone should perhaps inform the author of this book so they can correct the error.”

Yusuke really, really wanted to punch him in that moment as Minamino stared down at the book in his hand, his brow furrowed.

What an asshole.

“It doesn’t really matter, does it, though?” Kuwabara asked. “Most people aren’t even going to bother reading that book.” At Minamino’s pointed look, he stammered, “Ah, no offence. But…”

The trio fell into an uneasy silence as Yusuke glowered at both of them. Minamino was staring down at his book, face flushed as he rubbed his fingertips along the cover. Kuwabara’s eyes were skating from side-to-side as if he couldn’t work out where to rest them.

The door to the compartment slid open.

“Snacks, boys?”

Kuwabara shot to his feet at the friendly greeting from the young woman pushing a trolley along the corridor.

“Yes. Definitely,” he said, fumbling in his pockets.

Minamino’s eyes remained down, his posture rigid. Yusuke began to feel guilty. Maybe he’d overreacted.

Seeing an opportunity to perhaps salvage the situation, he shoved his hand into his pocket and offered Kuwabara a handful of coins.

Kuwabara blinked at him in confusion.

“I’m not really familiar with that stuff,” Yusuke said, gesturing to the colourful and unfamiliar packaging of the sweets. “Just pick what you think we’ll all like.”

Minamino glanced up, brow still furrowed.

“Not for me, thank you,” he said stiffly. “I have no wizarding money with me right now.”

“It’s okay,” Yusuke said. “That should be enough for all of us, right, Kuwabara?”

Kuwabara nodded as he counted out the coins Yusuke had handed him.

“Yeah, that’s plenty,” he said. “Thanks, man.”

Nothing like a little money to buy friendship, Yusuke thought wryly. Now he’d have to try to not fuck it up again. He couldn’t afford to use money to placate everyone if he continued to piss them off at his usual rate. Even the vault in Gringotts didn’t hold enough currency for that.


	2. The Boy Who Lived, Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is available in audio form for those who would prefer to listen rather than read. Please note that this is a text to speech recording, which means that there may be some issues with it.
> 
> [Stream or download MP3 via Google Drive](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mH12Z_zMaHLtEpRGHC2OYU-WvKnyF2Qg/view?usp=sharing)

“So, if your sister graduated last year, you should know about this school, right?” Yusuke leaned forward to address Kuwabara.

Beside him, Minamino had abandoned his book for the moment and was turning a small wrapped piece of candy around between his long fingers. His eyes were narrowed in focused speculation.

“Um, yeah, I guess so,” Kuwabara said.

“So, what can you tell us about it?” Yusuke asked. “What’s it like?”

Kuwabara adopted a thoughtful expression. Minamino raised his eyes from the candy he was contemplating to look at Kuwabara.

“Well… the school sits at the foot of Mt. Zetsubō,” Kuwabara began.

“A place of great spiritual power,” Minamino interjected.

Kuwabara looked startled by the interruption but he nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “The Muggles think it’s haunted but that’s just because of the school. Some magical creatures live on the mountain so they can take advantage of the school’s protections against Muggles.”

“What creatures?” Yusuke asked eagerly. He’d seen a few magical creatures in Diagon Alley but most of those had only been babies.

“Centaurs, unicorns… there’s a kraken in the lake on the school grounds,” Kuwabara said.

“Neat,” Yusuke said. He really wanted to see that kraken. His mind conjured up an image of a massive black form rising up out of the lake, long tentacles the width of tree trunks sending water up onto the shore. Maybe it would have a lot of bulging eyes on it’s slimy, bulbous head. Truthfully, he had no idea what a kraken really looked like.

Minamino looked concerned. “Is that safe?” he asked. “Around so many young people?”

His words brought back Yusuke’s earlier musings about the other boy’s age.

“Hey,” he said to Minamino. “How old are you, anyway?”

Minamino blinked at him in confusion. “Fourteen,” he said.

“Fourteen?” Yusuke asked. “I thought the minimum age was fifteen.”

“I turn fifteen next month,” Minamino said. He slipped the piece of candy he’d just unwrapped into his mouth.

“The age rule isn’t set in stone,” Kuwabara said. “Sometimes they’ll let younger students in if their grades are good enough.”

Minamino made a small choking noise. He swallowed as his face took on a sickly green colour. As he raised one hand to his mouth he began to cough.

“I did try to warn you,” Kuwabara said apologetically, referring to his earlier comment that the candy wrappers weren’t lying about the flavours.

Minamino wiped at his watering eyes. “That... That should be illegal,” he managed to get out.

Yusuke smirked at him. He’d — wisely — decided not to partake in the more imaginative flavours that he’d found in their stash of candy. Minamino, it seemed, was a bit more adventurous.

“Anyway,” Kuwabara said. “Once we get to the school, we’ll be sorted into one of four houses.”

“Houses?” Yusuke asked.

“Yeah. There’s Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin,” Kuwabara informed them. “My sister was in Gryffindor. That’s where I’ll be too.”

“How do you know?” Minamino asked, a crease appearing between his eyebrows. “There was nothing mentioned about that in the information I received from the school.”

“Everyone in my family has been in Gryffindor,” Kuwabara said proudly. “It’s the best house.”

“Sounds a bit stupid to me,” Yusuke said. “Why do they have to separate the students into groups? Why not just have us separated by year groups like normal schools?”

“It is curious,” Minamino said thoughtfully, his voice slightly raw. “It does seem unnecessary.”

Kuwabara shrugged. “That’s how it’s always been done,” he said.

“So we might be separated?” Minamino asked, an anxious note entering his voice.

It occurred to Yusuke then that Minamino, despite how assured he’d acted earlier, might be feeling a little out of his depth. He couldn’t blame the redhead. Yusuke was in much the same situation himself.

“Maybe we’ll get into the same house,” he said. “But even if we don’t, I’ll still annoy the shit out of you.” He nudged Minamino’s shoulder with his own. A small smile came onto Minamino’s face.

* * *

“Finally,” Yusuke groaned as they joined the throng of other students making their way along a wide path toward the school. He and his two new friends were dressed in what passed for uniforms at this school. Yusuke was used to wearing a uniform, as his previous school had required them. But the black robe that covered his shirt and trousers was ridiculous. Why couldn’t they dress like normal people?

His wand was safely tucked beneath his robe. He’d only ever used it once, while he was testing it at Ollivander’s in Diagon Alley. It’s core was a phoenix feather. Perhaps that had influenced his decision to purchase Puu.

He could see that ahead of them, there were several black carriages parked on the right edge of the path. Curiously, there were no horses in sight. The carriages weren’t hooked to anything.

Minamino suddenly froze, the colour draining from his face.

“Hey, you okay?” Yusuke asked him. The boy looked like he was about to faint.

“That’s… that’s…” Minamino raised one shaking hand to point at the nearest carriage.

“Yeah…?” Yusuke said, drawing the word out uncertainly. Kuwabara had stopped as well, his own face as confused as Yusuke’s. “It’s a carriage,” Yusuke said, not understanding why Minamino looked so rattled.

“Can’t you see it?” Minamino asked, sounding strangled.

“See what?” Kuwabara asked, scanning the area around the carriage.

“The… the…” Minamino swayed on his feet. Kuwabara put a steadying arm around his shoulders.

“First years! First years, over here!” a familiar feminine voice called. Yusuke ignored it in favour of trying to figure out what Minamino was going on about.

“I don’t get it,” he told the redhead. “It’s a carriage.”

“Yeah,” Kuwabara agreed. “I mean, it’s weird that there’s nothing pulling it but…”

“But there is,” Minamino insisted. “Can’t you see it?”

“It’s a Thestral.”

The new voice was blunt and disgusted. Yusuke turned to see a short boy glaring up at him with blood-red eyes. His hair was black and spiked up. His arms were crossed over his chest.

Kuwabara’s jaw tensed at the sight of the newcomer but he didn’t say anything.

“A Thestral?” Yusuke asked.

“You can’t see it because you haven’t seen death,” the short boy informed him. His red eyes fixed on Kuwabara. “For someone who belongs to a wizarding family, you don’t know much,” he commented. “Maybe your family’s been living among the Mudbloods for too long.”

He started past them, heading in the direction of the voice that had hailed the first years earlier. Yusuke watched him go, a frown on his face.

“Who was that?” he asked.

Kuwabara glowered at the short boy’s back. Yusuke was surprised that the boy seemed oblivious to it. Surely he could feel the heat from that glare?

“That’s Jaganshi Hiei,” Kuwabara said. “His father works for the Ministry of Magic. There’s rumours that his dad is a Death Eater, too.”

“But the Dark Lord is dead,” Yusuke pointed out. “Doesn’t that mean the Death Eaters are gone?”

“Some people think they are,” Kuwabara said. “But some people say they’re not.”

“First years!”

“I guess we should get going before they leave us behind,” Kuwabara said.

They walked toward the lake, Minamino tucked between Kuwabara and Yusuke. As they left the carriages behind, Minamino began to perk up. As they walked, he began to flip through his book.

Yusuke watched in amazement as Minamino somehow managed to maintain a straight course while seemingly absorbed in the book. From the redhead’s other side, Kuwabara looked equally fascinated, his small eyes wide and his mouth slightly agape.

“There’s nothing in here about Thestrals…” Minamino muttered.

“Y’know,” Kuwabara started. “It’s weird that you couldn’t see them, Yusuke. You watched the Dark Lord and your aunt die when you were a baby. So why can’t you see the Thestrals?”

Minamino raised his head from his book, looking interested. “That is curious,” he said.

“Maybe it’s because I can’t remember any of it,” Yusuke suggested. “I was a baby.”

“It’s possible that you never saw your aunt die,” Minamino mused.

“But he should have seen the Dark Lord die,” Kuwabara argued.

“Yes. Unless…”

“Unless what?” Yusuke asked impatiently.

Minamino turned his emerald eyes on Yusuke.

“The Dark Lord didn’t actually die…” he said.

Kuwabara shivered, his angular face turning pale in the dying light of the day. “Don’t say that,” he said. “Seriously, don’t say that, Minamino.”

“YUSUKE!”

Yusuke froze as he felt slim arms encircle him.

“You made it!” Botan squealed as she released him.

Kuwabara’s eyes almost bugged out of his head as he stared at them.

“Ah, yeah,” Yusuke said awkwardly. “And, ah, you probably shouldn’t be hugging students, Botan. That’s just a bit inappropriate…”

Botan looked unfazed by his comment as she beamed at him. She wore a traditional pink kimono and her blue hair was pulled up into a ponytail. Her fuchsia eyes were bright beneath her fringe. She looked just as bubbly as she had the first time Yusuke had seen her, when she’d delivered his letter directly to him. By knocking on his window in the middle of the night. The window on the second storey of his house.

“Come on,” she said. “You’re the last ones to arrive.”

Yusuke followed her down to the bank of the lake. A line of canoes waited, almost all of them already packed with students.

“Get in,” Botan said, still smiling at them. Kuwabara got in first, with Minamino next, then Yusuke bringing up the rear. Botan fluttered off to get in another boat.

“Here we go!” she shouted to the students. Just as Yusuke was wondering if they were supposed to take up the oars and start rowing or something, the boats shot forward onto the glassy surface of the lake. Minamino gripped the side of the boat tightly as Kuwabara leaned forward to stare ahead of them. Yusuke found himself staring down into the dark water of the lake as he wondered if the kraken was down there, waiting to grab a nice meal.

“I can see the school!” Kuwabara called back to them.

Yusuke raised his eyes from the lake to see that, now visible in the mists, was a large castle built of stone. Beyond it rose the tall form of a mountain.

“A castle?” he asked in puzzlement. He hadn’t been expecting that.

“The school was founded by wizards from England,” Minamino said, “Hence the unusual architecture.” His book now rested on his lap. “Some of the outer buildings are more traditional, however.”

They passed smoothly over the lake as the sky darkened and the stars revealed themselves. They reached the steep side of a cliff and the boats slipped through an ivy curtain, continuing on down a dark, damp tunnel. Fireflies flitted around, providing light as well as a magical atmosphere.

“I think we’re beneath the castle,” Minamino murmured. He had his book open to what appeared to be a map of the school.

The boats stopped at a rocky shore and the students scrambled out. Botan led them up a flight of stone stairs to the upper level of the castle. As Minamino had surmised, the passage had taken them into the bowels of the school.

“Where are the older students?” Yusuke asked curiously as they were shown into the warmly lit building.

“They’re probably already in the Great Hall,” Kuwabara said. “I guess they’re going to sort us into houses before we eat.”

“Shit,” Yusuke muttered. “I’m hungry.” He hoped that the sorting wouldn’t take long.

He eyed the artwork hanging on the walls with interest as they walked by them, following Botan in a ragged line. He was no expert on art but these paintings looked old.

He blinked in startled shock as a monk in one of the paintings bowed to him. Had he really just seen that? Maybe he was tired. He rubbed at his eyes.

“This is the Great Hall, where we eat our meals,” Botan informed the students as they stopped outside a door. “If you’ll just wait quietly one moment…”

Botan vanished through the door. Just a few scant seconds later, she was back, bright smile in place.

“Before you sit down for dinner, you’ll be sorted into your houses,” she told the students. “We sort students by personality traits, so you’ll be sure to find new friends in your house.”

Yusuke raised his hand. “Hey, Botan!” he called.

Botan fixed him with a severe look. “Professor Botan,” she corrected him.

Yusuke rolled his eyes. “Right,” he said. “Can we change houses if we want to?”

“No. A student will only be moved from a house under the most extreme of circumstances,” Botan said. “The sorting is final. Any more questions?”

Another student raised her hand. “How will we be sorted?” she asked.

“You will be assessed by an impartial judge,” Botan answered. “Any other questions?”

After a moment of nervous silence, she clapped her hands.

“All right, everyone!” she said. “Follow me.”

Yusuke’s eyes widened as they entered the Great Hall. There were five tables in the room. One stretched out along the back wall of the room, while the other four were positioned perpendicular to it. There were people seated at all five tables, though Yusuke noticed empty chairs situated here and there.

“Look up there.”

Minamino nudged his shoulder. Yusuke looked up to see that the ceiling of the Great Hall appeared to be transparent. He could see the clear sky above them, stars winking beyond the candles that lit the room.

“Students, please stand in a line and wait for your name to be called!” Botan instructed.

As the first name was called, Yusuke’s eye was drawn to a stool. Sitting on it was an old, tattered looking black hat. He frowned.

“What’s that?” he asked. He wasn’t sure if he was asking Minamino or Kuwabara but it was Kuwabara that answered.

“It’s the Sorting Hat,” he said. “It decides which house we belong in.”

“Ah, how?” Yusuke asked, baffled.

The girl whose name had been called approached Botan. The blue-haired professor spoke to her briefly before gesturing at the stool.

The girl stepped up to the stool and lifted the hat from it. She sat down on the stool and placed the hat on her head.

A minute of silence passed. Yusuke grew restless. “This is going to take forever,” he grumbled to Kuwabara. “And how is a goddamn hat supposed to tell us what house we belong in anyway?”

Kuwabara shrugged in response. “It’s magic,” he said, as if that explained everything.

“Ravenclaw!” The shout seemed to come from the hat on the girl’s head, startling Yusuke.

“It talks?” he demanded as the girl took the hat off and set it back on the stool before jogging over to join the table that had erupted into cheers as soon as the hat had shouted out the house’s name.

Yusuke watched with growing uncertainty as the other students were sorted. He noticed that there seemed to be some hostility between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. Both tables booed when students were sorted into the opposite house. That didn’t sit right with Yusuke at all. They were all students here, no matter what house they belonged to. Right?

Maybe it was just good-natured rivalry, but Yusuke didn’t get that impression at all.

Jaganshi Hiei, the boy who had spoken to them about the Thestrals, was sorted into Slytherin.

“I knew it,” Kuwabara muttered.

“Kuwabara Kazuma!”

Kuwabara jogged forward to take his own turn with the Sorting Hat. It took just a few seconds for the hat to announce it’s decision.

“Gryffindor!” it called.

Kuwabara gave them a big, goofy smile before heading over to the cheering Gryffindors. He was greeted with enthusiasm by his new housemates, who congratulated him and clapped him on the back.

Minamino edged closer to Yusuke, looking as nervous as Yusuke felt.

“You okay?” Yusuke asked him as the next student was called.

“I feel somewhat unwell,” Minamino stated.

He did look pale and his eyes were slightly unfocused.

“It’s been a pretty big day,” Yusuke told him. “Just hang in there a bit longer.”

Minamino nodded. “I haven’t slept much over the past week,” he confessed.

“Me, neither,” Yusuke admitted.

“Minamino Shuichi!”

“Good luck, buddy,” Yusuke said to him.

“Thank you. Good luck to you too,” Minamino told Yusuke before he left him to walk to the Sorting Hat. Unlike most of the other students, he didn’t look particularly excited or eager. He picked up the Hat and seated himself, placing the hat on his head.

A minute passed. Then another. Yusuke began to grow concerned. Had something gone wrong?

Minamino’s face remained impassive, though Yusuke noticed that his jaw was tensed.

Unable to take the suspense any longer, Yusuke shouted out, “Hey! Get on with it!”

“Yusuke!” Botan admonished from her position near the stool.

“Slytherin!”

“Fuck,” Yusuke muttered as Minamino lifted the hat from his head. He stood and set it down on the stool. His eyes met Yusuke’s briefly before he turned and walked to the Slytherin table. The Slytherins greeted him as enthusiastically as the Gryffindors had greeted Kuwabara, but Minamino barely reacted. He took a seat next to the Jaganshi boy, his eyes lowered to the empty plate before him.

Yusuke waited impatiently for his turn. He was, unsurprisingly, last on the list, since they were being sorted in alphabetical order.

“Urameshi Yusuke!”

A murmur rumbled around the room as if the name were a pebble dropped into a still pool. Yusuke ignored it and strode toward the hat. He grabbed it off the stool and sat before yanking it down onto his head.

_I’ve been expecting you._

Yusuke’s eyes widened at the sound of the voice in his head.

“Hey!” he said. “Who’re you?”

_You don’t need to speak out loud. I can hear your thoughts just fine. I’m the Sorting Hat._

A few snickers from other students floated into Yusuke's ears and caused him to scowl. How was he supposed to know?

_You can talk? In my head?_ Yusuke asked.

_Of course I can._

_Yeah. Because all hats are telepathic and can talk. Silly me,_ Yusuke retorted.

_Antagonistic, aren’t you? Your father was the same._

_Wait, you knew my father?_

That revelation startled Yusuke. He’d never known his father. His mother rarely even spoke about him. It was as though the subject were a fresh bruise, too sore to touch.

_I sorted him into Slytherin,_ the hat informed him. _That may have been a mistake._

_A mistake?_ Yusuke asked.

_Then again, maybe it wouldn’t have made any real difference in the end,_ the hat said. _In any case, you aren’t your father. For you, I think…_

“Gryffindor!”


End file.
